Games and the Lottery

Friday, July 10th

Entering July, summer slowly began to find its way into room 106 where Koutarou and the others lived. The crying cicadas could be heard coming from the trees planted along the road, and the strong sunlight came beaming through the window, raising the temperature. The temperature, however, was even higher inside with seven people crowding into the small six tatami mat room.

“Waaaaah! Blue Knight dieeeeed!”

“Well, if you recklessly keep pushing deep into the dungeon, it was bound to happen eventually.”

“Tell me, pleb! How do I save Blue Knight?!”

“Form a rescue party and get to where Blue Knight and the others died.”

“All right, I’ll give it a try! You stay here and give me advice when appropriate, pleb!”

“I got it, so just calm down a little. It’s just a game.”

“How could I calm down?! My Blue Knight just died, you know! Ahh, getting lazy and calling all the magicians Yurika backfired!”

“That’s a false accusation!”

Raising the temperature in the room even more was the worn-out console hooked up to the TV. Koutarou had gotten his parents to buy it for him when he was young, and even though it was now outdated, he had gotten so attached to it that he brought it with him to room 106. Ruth had found it while cleaning the wardrobe the other day, which is how it ended up where it currently was.

“You’ll need party members that’ll be useful right away for a rescue mission, so don’t bring advanced classes with you. You won’t need a thief either.”

“And what about the equipment?”

“It’s common for the rescue party to get stranded as well, so use the best equipment that you have available.”

“I see. Then let’s go!”

The one showing interest in the console was Theia, having come from a different planet. Initially she was timid about it, but as she picked up a controller she behaved just like a kid playing a game for the first time. And ever since, she had Koutarou accompany her as she went on adventures.